Best Roadhouse This Side of Austin - Irish American News

June 2008 IRISH AMERICAN NEWS 9Frank West Addresses Michigan IrishOn May 6th Frank West travelled to Muskegon,Michigan, to speak on current trends inIrish literature. West, who has been IAN’s bookand drama critic for thirty-one years, addresseda dinner meeting of nearly 100 members of theMuskegon Irish American Societyand the Grand Rapids Irish HeritageSociety. He first presented an historicaloverview of Irish literaturefrom ancient times, and then spokeenthusiastically of the contemporaryexplosion in popularity of modernIrish literature and drama. He discussedtoday’s Irish writers like thebest-selling Maeve Binchy, and therecent nominee for the Edgar Award(best mystery), Ken Bruen. He alsoincluded poets and playwrights,pointing out that Tommy Marren’splay, The Banshee of Crokey Hill,was recently produced in Chicago. Inclosing, Frank promised to prepareand forward a recommended readinglist for the audience.Neil Mullally, Program Chair ofthe Muskegon Irish American Society,said that Frank’s appearancewas among the best received in the club’sthirty-five year history. The dinner is heldannually in May.Muskegon, Michigan, is located on the eastcoast of Lake Michigan, about 180 miles northof Chicago. It is the home of the MichiganIrish Music Festival, which is held in mid-September each year. The festival website iswww.michiganirish.org. Muskegon is alsoFrank West (left) with Neil Mullallyhome to the Muskegon Irish American Society,one of the largest Irish American organizationsin Michigan. Its website is www.muskegonirishamerican.com.